Abstract:

Mobile Location Based Services (LBS) are one of the most recent mobile advances for businesses and advertisers. LBS are services that allow mobile users to find geographically based informlation by using Global Positioning System capabilities (GPS) within their device. The problems with LBS are that many mobile users do not understand how they work, the privacy implications, or that businesses are taking advantage of consumer location information. LBS are growing at a rapid rate, almost parallel to the growth of smartphones, and are causing privacy concerns because legislation has been unable to keep up with the pace of technology adoption. This paper is an analysis of LBS including how LBS work, their benefits, and how Congress is attempting to protect user's information through new regulations. The findings in this paper include where and when LBS began and popular user applications such as Foursquare, Yelp, and Facebook. It also discusses the best mobile platforms for advertisers: xAd, Apple iAd, and LeadBolt. LBS provide useful benefits to users and businesses as long as companies do not abuse privacy privileges. Companies using LBS hope to be able to practice self-regulation, but Congress is involved and working to pass various regulatory laws. The paper concludes with a discussion of how user concerns are being mitigated and where the future of LBS is headed. This is just the beginning of the discussions of LBS as they continue to playa larger role in mobile marketing technology.